Pei Yunxi was almost driven to laughter by this absurd logic.

Utterly speechless, she raised her head and looked at the self-righteous Qin Zhen, a mocking curve forming at the corners of her mouth.

"Qin Zhen, are you saying that just because he has good intentions, I have to appreciate it?"

"Regardless of whether I need it or want it, as long as he shows kindness, I have to accept it with immense gratitude?"

"What kind of logic is that? Since when is it someone else's turn to decide whether I should be grateful for my own affairs?" 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Her words were like a machine gun, fast, accurate, and merciless.

"His good intentions are his business; whether I accept them or not is my freedom."

"What, is it my fault that I don't need his help?"

"Your skill in guilt-tripping is certainly much better than your medical skills."

Pei Yunxi was famous for her sharp tongue; once she spoke, she hit right at the weak spot.

Qin Zhen felt her chest tighten from the barrage of words, her face flushing red. She wanted to retort, but found herself completely outmatched in eloquence. She could only glare futilely at Pei Yunxi.

"You... you..."

She stuttered for a long time but couldn't form a single complete sentence in rebuttal.

Seeing the situation turning ugly, Zhao Jing quickly pulled Qin Zhen's arm and whispered,

"Forget it, Qin Zhen, stop talking. It's... it's my fault for being a busybody."

His words only made Qin Zhen feel that Pei Yunxi had subjected Zhao Jing to a massive injustice.

Too lazy to pay them any more attention, Pei Yunxi picked up the heaviest bedroll and her schoolbag, taking the lead to walk out of the dorm.

When Pei Yunxi, carrying and dragging bags of all sizes, struggled to the school gate and found a spot in the shade to wait, enemies were bound to cross paths. She ran into Zhao Jing riding his bicycle with Qin Zhen sitting on the back seat.

The wheels of the brand-new bicycle rolled across the ground, making a brisk sound.

Qin Zhen rested one hand lightly on Zhao Jing's waist, wearing a showy look of triumph on her face.

The two were traveling light, forming a sharp contrast with the mountain-like pile of luggage beside Pei Yunxi. They certainly looked much more relaxed and comfortable.

As the bicycle passed by Pei Yunxi, it slowed down.

Qin Zhen cast a sidelong glance at Pei Yunxi, curling her lips.

"Oh, what's wrong, no one came to pick you up? You have to just wait here? Didn't you say you didn't need anyone to see you off?"

Pei Yunxi rolled her eyes. "Who said no one is picking me up?"

"Oh, you mean your sister-in-law?"

Qin Zhen immediately thought of the rumors at Jinghua University about Shen Nanchu, who drove herself to and from school.

"Is that sister-in-law of yours at Jinghua University having trouble saving her own skin?"

"I heard she was caught red-handed cheating at school. It caused a huge uproar. Tsk tsk, what a disgrace..."

She had originally only wanted to mock Pei Yunxi a bit to vent her anger from the dorm earlier, but as she spoke, she blurted out the absurd rumor she had recently heard about Shen Nanchu, her tone full of schadenfreude.

Unfortunately for her, her news was outdated.

Pei Yunxi hadn't wanted to bother with Qin Zhen, but these words weren't just directed at her—Qin Zhen actually dared to slander her most respected and protected sister-in-law, Shen Nanchu!

This completely crossed Pei Yunxi's bottom line!

Pei Yunxi's face instantly darkened, her eyes turning as sharp as knives.

"Qin Zhen, watch your filthy mouth!"

Pei Yunxi's voice was as cold as ice. "You dare spread rumors about my sister-in-law?"

Qin Zhen was slightly startled by her glare, but relying on Zhao Jing's presence and the fact that she was on a bicycle, she emboldened herself and stubbornly replied,

"How am I spreading rumors? That's what everyone is saying out there! Jinghua University even put up a notice! Shen Nanchu cheated..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Pei Yunxi was thoroughly enraged.

Without another word, she lunged forward with astonishing speed.

Her left hand shot out like lightning, firmly grabbing Qin Zhen's arm, and yanked it down with force!

"Ah!"

Caught off guard, Qin Zhen cried out in alarm. She was forcefully yanked right off the back seat of the bicycle, stumbling a few steps and nearly falling to the ground, looking utterly miserable.

"Pei Yunxi! What are you doing!"

Zhao Jing turned pale with fright. He quickly squeezed the brakes, swung his long leg to get off the bike, and hurried forward to stop them, terrified that the two female comrades would actually start fighting.

But Pei Yunxi was very cunning.

She appeared to be charging at Qin Zhen again, but out of the corner of her eye, she was keeping a close watch on Zhao Jing.

The moment Zhao Jing reached out to separate her and Qin Zhen, Pei Yunxi's foot seemingly slipped by accident. Her body slammed into Zhao Jing at an incredibly tricky angle just as he tried to break up the fight!

Pei Yunxi's bump was clever, using a skillful application of force.

Zhao Jing's entire focus was on separating the two; he never expected Pei Yunxi to pull such a sudden move.

Unable to keep his footing, he let out a cry and completely lost his balance, pitching straight forward!

And directly in front of him was Qin Zhen, who had just steadied herself and was still recovering from the shock!

"Bang!"

"Ah!"

Screaming, the two of them crashed into a tangled heap.

Zhao Jing fell directly on top of Qin Zhen, and the bicycle crashed to the side with a clatter.

Qin Zhen took a solid fall. Her elbows and knees struck the hard ground, causing her to grimace in pain as tears welled up in her eyes.

At the same time, being pressed down so closely by the person she liked made a secret, inappropriate sense of shyness and hidden joy involuntarily bloom in her heart amidst the pain.

Zhao Jing, however, had it much worse.

When he fell, a piercing pain shot through his ankle; it was clearly sprained.

He tried to stand up but couldn't help drawing a sharp breath of cold air, fine beads of sweat instantly breaking out on his forehead.

Qin Zhen soon noticed something was wrong with Zhao Jing. Seeing his pained expression and the foot he didn't dare put weight on, the slight romantic thoughts that had just surfaced were instantly replaced by anger.

She ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‍struggled out from under him, ignoring her own pain. "Brother Zhao, are you okay?"

Zhao Jing shook his head.

Qin Zhen let out a sigh of relief. She turned her head, pointed at Pei Yunxi's nose, and started cursing,

"Pei Yunxi! You shrew! You did that on purpose! You actually dared to push Brother Zhao! Look, you injured Brother Zhao's foot! I'm not done with you! I'm definitely going to the school leaders, and I'll make sure you get disciplined!"

Pei Yunxi stood where she was, clapping imaginary dust from her hands. She looked coldly at the exasperated Qin Zhen and the pale, pained Zhao Jing. There was no fear on her face; instead, she wore a light expression of having successfully pulled off her scheme.

She was just about to retort when, suddenly—

A deep, powerful car engine roared from a distance, approaching at incredible speed! At the moment it neared the school gate, the driver jerked the steering wheel and pulled the handbrake!

"Screech—!"

The tires let out a brief, ear-piercing screech against the ground. With a stunningly beautiful and clean drift, the black car stopped steadily right in front of Pei Yunxi.

This sudden scene instantly stunned everyone present.

Qin Zhen's angry curses came to an abrupt halt. Zhao Jing, completely forgetting the pain in his foot, joined the crowd of curious students in staring dumbfounded at the car that had seemingly descended from the heavens.

Immediately after, the driver's side window rolled down, revealing a stunningly beautiful face. She looked somewhat nonchalant, yet exuded an absolutely commanding aura.

Shen Nanchu rested one hand on the steering wheel and turned her head slightly.

Her red lips parted. Her voice was not loud, but it reached everyone's ears with perfect clarity,

"Who has the audacity to bully our family's Lao San?"

...